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18-Apr-2005 -- We reached this confluence point on the second day of a six-day dog sled trip to the Barrenlands. The trip began from the north shore of McLeod Bay on the east arm of Great Slave Lake (approximately 170 miles east of Yellowknife, NT Canada).

The dog sled team members consisted of Adriana Kwicinski (12-years old), Annika Olesen (9-years old), Larry Kwicinski and Dave Olesen (Dave is owner/operator of Hoarfrost River Huskies). We had four sleds, twenty-six huskies and all of the equipment/food necessary for a self-supporting trip. Our direction of travel was north east along the Hoarfrost River.

The snow conditions at this time of year are unpredictable. Our main worry was that rising temperatures would create slushy conditions making it very difficult for the dogs. Luckily, the temperatures remained fairly low and we only ran into tough sledding conditions near the end of the trip.

On the second day of the trip we camped on a lake just north of the confluence point. This camp site was as close as we could get to the confluence point with the dog teams. It was about a mile away from the confluence point.

We traveled the last mile on snowshoes. The kids, weighing half as much as the adults, spent a lot less time digging themselves out of the deep snow. The terrain on the last mile to the confluence point consisted of gently rolling hills. The vegetation was mostly a sparse cover of spruce with heavier growth in protected valleys. The confluence point was in an open area with clear views in all directions.

An added bonus from the visit to this confluence point was the sighting of an artic wolf crossing the lake near our camp.